NR Essentials #4: Nirvana - MTV Unplugged In New York
 

Nirvana
MTV Unplugged In New York
1994, DGC Records

The chances are good that my connection to this record has a great deal to do with my age. I was in my early teens when this set aired on MTV, and it was a big fucking deal. Back then there was no YouTube. The night it aired I taped it on my VCR (remember VCRs?) and then ran the VCR into my stereo and copied the performance--sans commercials--onto a cassette tape. That cassette tape got a lot of play. And in fact, it wasn't until that neon memorax shit the bed that I finally bought the actual CD release a few years later that included some extra shiz not originally aired.

But even when I take away emotional attachments; even when I take away those confused adolescent evenings spent disecting the setlist to look for "cries for help that WE should have answered"--UNPLUGGED is a great fucking album. And in truth, there are very few live albums that are this good.

The fact that it's "unplugged" is almost the antithesis of what people knew Nirvana for at the time. Remember? And on top of that there were very few "hits" in the set. And what's stranger: there were a LOT of covers. Weird ones. Back then it was like, 'who the fuck are the Vaselines? who the fuck are the Meat Puppets? AND WHY WOULD KURT PLAY A DAVID FUCKING BOWIE SONG???"

There's tons of awkward moments throughout. And yet, I prefer the fuckup in the middle of "Pennyroyal Tea" to the LP version. And "Oh Me" kills me every time because it makes me recall the anictode that Michael Azarad brings up in COME AS YOU ARE of how Kurt played Courtney (I do believe they were once in love) the entire 2nd Meat Puppets album acoustic so that she'd understand why he loved it so much.

Most rock historians acredit NEVERMIND with being the most 'important' Nirvana record. Sure. And a lot of hipsters may side with IN UTERO for well... Albini, and the fact that it was far less mersh. But when all is done and said, I've spent nights listening to this album 3 or 4 times in a row. And there are very few albums that I can still do that with.

fuck nevermind. (mostly) fuck in utero. this and bleach are the most honest and raw things they ever did.

a note on bleach. i duno if anyone is as fanatical a reader of blastitude as i am, but i love that website, and pretty much they portray my exact taste in music (deep down a rock and roll/punk guy who is mostly disillusioned with the stale bullshit in rock these days and therefore has turned to more obscure "sound/noise not music" artists), and in larry dolman's top 100 records of all time, he had bleach in the 70's-80's i remember. he talks about how shitty the quality of the recording is, how kurt's voice was far from perfected, how it sounds like they can't decide if theyre gonna be huge rock stars or if theyre gonna be scratch acid, but then he goes on to ask, "then why is the best thing nirvana ever made?". i totally agree with that, by all technical/musical aspects, bleach is pretty garbage, its the honesty and rawness and purity of the recording that makes it such a landmark. o and he says something like, "under all that clustered feedback and lo grade recording techniques, the melodies and the incredible pop craftsmanship is there", also very true.

MTV Unplugged and Bleach are probably my favorites also.

My favorite release they ever did, slightly edging over In Utero. I've owned it since I was twelve and it still brings me on the verge of tears, as lame as that sound. Like batreleaser said, it's the most honest and raw thing they ever did. Also the only Unplugged session that doesn't suck imo.

unplugged is my fav behind in utero

i watched the DVD yesterday

like most nirvana albums, this is ok.

i bought the tape shortly after it was released, i think it was because i was constantly listening to in utero at that point.

some songs are great, especially the first and last songs. i do hate the guitar sound they got for kurt's guitar, though.

oh right, i also had a picture of the whole stage for this on one of my school notes holder dealies (don't know what they are called in english).

One accoustic song from Nirvana ( About a Girl ) : ok.
A whole record : boring .

i could never get into this record. even when i was a nirvana freak. bleach is my favorite record of theirs.

its ok. i like the meat puppets covers probably more than anything.

I could never get into this even when I kinda liked Nirvana. Found it boring. Most people I know in real life think this one is the best, I've noticed.

i taped this when they showed it on tv and watched every day for something like 3 months. nowadays though i like everything else they did a lot more than the unplugged set, i probably haven't even listened to it in about 9 or 10 years.
incesticide is my favourite.

Never understood the love for this record
sure its, pleasant, but it's a one off. it was never meant to be "a classic"
i've seen it in numerous "best of" wank lists and i just don't get it

I only like particular Nirvana songs, like School, Negative Creep, Scentless Apprentice, In Bloom, and others. Apart from the covers, Pennyroyal Tea is perhaps the only track on the Unplugged that I like.

OH WAIT, I'm thinking of another live acoustic recording of Pennyroyal Tea. The Unplugged version is garbage.

The MP tracks stand out on tis record.

I was a big fan of Bleach and liked the other Nirvana albums, but this just made me realise what an annoying twat Cobain could be.

And his voice is absolutely terrible on it.

I usually jack off to the sounds of guitars with holes in them.

But not this particular record.

The live set is the only thing of theirs I'm really into, to be honest - their version of Leadbelly's "How Do You Sleep At Night" kills bigtime.

My favorite Nirvana record is LIVE FROM THE MUDDY BANKS blah blah. Though Bleach and Incesticide are cool too.

I could quite happily listen to any Nirvana record apart from this one.

Interesting range of opinions on this record so far.

as in 'Good' or as in 'bad'
i'm sorry i'm not too hip with street speak

i'm always suprise at how many Non Nirvana fans (and people who dislike decent music) love Unplugged. It seems to cross boards